


Bruises

by starkly



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Angst, Angsty Schmoop, F/M, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-04-22
Updated: 2012-04-22
Packaged: 2017-11-05 23:53:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 550
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/412428
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starkly/pseuds/starkly
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>For all the times he’s let Pepper cover his bruises up, she’s taken just as much care to hide hers better.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Bruises

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Dee. Again. Because she gives me all the Pepperony feels.

“Come on, just let me see — ”

“It’s nothing, Tony. Please let go of my shirt.”

Tony, being Tony, doesn’t. “Please.”

Pepper’s next protest falls from her lips, and she looks at Tony in surprise. “What?”

“I said please. Is that really so surprising?”

There’s no hesitation in her response. “Yes.”

Tony chuckles, runs a hand back through his hair. “Okay, yeah, but still. I want to see.”

Pepper is silent, contemplating, but finally she begins to unbutton her blouse. Tony watches with rapt fascination. It’s not as if he’s never seen her take her shirt off, but it is one of the few times he’s ever been allowed to see Pepper’s injuries. For all the times he’s let Pepper cover his bruises up, she’s taken just as much care to hide hers better.

The sight of the first bruise on her chest, peeking out from underneath her bra, has him feeling guilty already. If only he’d been fast enough, if he hadn’t been so damn cocky, she might not have been caught under that debris.

Pepper’s on the last button now, and she discards the shirt neatly on the other side of the bed. Reaching out, Tony touches a finger lightly to a mark on her shoulder. “Does it hurt?”

“They’re fading,” Pepper answers, which is not much of a real answer at all.

“So tough,” Tony says softly, a ghost of a smile on his lips, and he leans forward to kiss her. The kiss is brief, gentle, and after that Tony ducks his head, pressing an equally soft kiss to the bruise on Pepper’s chest. He can feel her breathing stop, her heartbeat speed up, and her hand moves to rest in his hair, drawing him back so she can look at his face.

“What are you doing?”

“Admiring you.” He takes her hand in his, kissing the small bruise on the inside of her wrist.

“Tony…”

“I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

Pepper sighs. “You didn’t hurt me. It was that monster.”

“It might as well’ve been my fault.” He stops, clears his throat. “I’m sorry.”

The apologetic tone doesn’t really suit him, he muses, but it seems to have worked on Pepper. She sighs softly again, squeezing Tony’s hand. “I know you are, Tony, even though you shouldn’t be.”

“I’ve got plenty else to be sorry for,” Tony replies, shaking his head, and Pepper doesn’t argue. They both know it’s true. Lucky for Tony, Pepper cares for him too much to let that get between them.

“There’s another one here.” She points at the bruise on her side, this one large and dark, and Tony’s pushing her back on the bed, curling over her body to kiss her side. “And here.” He shifts and kisses the discoloration marring her smooth, pale stomach. When he finishes that, she drags him up for another kiss, this one deeper, arms wrapped around his shoulders. Tony strokes at her hair, and when the kiss ends he says,

“That all of them?”

Pepper smiles faintly. “There may be a few more, if you’d like to find them.”

“It’d be my pleasure.” Tony chuckles, and Pepper gives him a quick kiss on the cheek before he starts looking for the rest of the marks that confirm his failure at keeping her safe.


End file.
